Fwd: Yinglish from Word-A-Day

[Susan Lerner <meydele...>]

Sha, sha - It's not musically related, I know, but given the discussion thread 
on Yinglish and Yiddish words (or not Yiddish words) in English, I thought this 
just beginning Word-A-Day series would be of interest to some list members.

Please note the urls at the end of the message for websites to access 
soundfiles pronouncing the word.  Neat, huh?

Shira


>Date: Mon, 29 Apr 2002 00:01:57 -0400
>From: Wordsmith <wsmith (at) wordsmith(dot)org>
>To: linguaphile (at) wordsmith(dot)org
>Subject: A.Word.A.Day--chutzpah
>
>chutzpah (KHOOT-spuh, HOOT-) noun, also chutzpa
>
>   Shameless impudence, brazen nerve, gall, effrontery.
>
>[From Yiddish khutspe, from Late Hebrew huspa.]
>
>   "Bill Gates, the company's chairman, even had the chutzpah to say that
>   this week's ruling was a challenge to `healthy competition in the
>   software industry'."
>   Leaders: Breaking Up Microsoft, The Economist (London), Jun 10, 2000.
>
>A language is the soul of its people. This is nowhere illustrated more
>profoundly than in the Yiddish language, the language of Jews of eastern
>and central Europe and their descendants. A tongue full of wit and charm,
>Yiddish embodies deep appreciation of human behavior in all its colorful
>manifestations. The word Yiddish comes from German Judisch meaning Jewish.
>But it is not the same as Hebrew, even though it is written in Hebrew script.
>
>Here's what Yiddish writer Isaac Bashevis Singer had to say about the
>language in his 1978 Nobel Prize acceptance speech:
>
>   "Yiddish language - a language of exile, without a land, without
>   frontiers, not supported by any government, a language which possesses
>   no words for weapons, ammunition, military exercises, war tactics ...
>   There is a quiet humor in Yiddish and a gratitude for every day of life,
>   every crumb of success, each encounter of love. The Yiddish mentality is
>   not haughty. It does not take victory for granted. It does not demand
>   and command but it muddles through, sneaks by, smuggles itself amidst
>   the powers of destruction, knowing somewhere that God's plan for
>   Creation is still at the very beginning ...
>   In a figurative way, Yiddish is the wise and humble language of us all,
>   the idiom of frightened and hopeful Humanity."
>
>Many of the everyday English language words such as bagel, klutz, and kibitz
>are terms from Yiddish. This week we'll look at a few other Yiddishisms
>that have enriched the English language.                           -Anu
>
>Today's AWAD is sponsored by NannyTax, Inc., offering on-line tax preparation
>and payroll tax compliance services to employers of domestic help. Please
>visit http://www.nannytax.com
>
>AND
>Learn A Second Language Quickly And Easily with Pimsleur. Only 30-minutes
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>
>............................................................................
>I look for what needs to be done.... After all, that's how the universe
>designs itself. -R. Buckminster Fuller, engineer, designer, and architect
>(1895-1983)
>
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>
>Pronunciation:
>http://wordsmith.org/words/chutzpah.wav
>http://wordsmith.org/words/chutzpah.ram 

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